


Thunder and Lightning, very very frightening me.

by SimplyEssa



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Caring Lance (Voltron), Cuddles, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Is that a tag??, Jacket sharing, Kissing in the Rain, M/M, Mentions of homophobia, Mutual Pining, Non-Established Relationship oops, Oops, Panic Attacks, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Protective Lance (Voltron), Scared Keith (Voltron), Thunderstorms, as in klance is not officially canon in my story but they're pining idiots, is that a tag?, it should be, its hard for me to write fluff so expect angst, mentions of self harm, others are mentioned - Freeform, why aren't these tags??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2018-12-24 11:14:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12011553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SimplyEssa/pseuds/SimplyEssa
Summary: Keith is scared of storms.





	Thunder and Lightning, very very frightening me.

**Author's Note:**

> Galleleo!  
> Sorry for the bad summary--
> 
> Okay; Trigger Warnings ago  
> Mentions of Past Abuse  
> Mentions of Past Child Rape oops  
> (it's more or less implied, but i warned you anyways)  
> Panic Attacks  
> i have yet to experience a panic attack so all of the symptoms are ones i've read from other stories.  
> if it's wrong, or whatever, please let me know!  
> without further ado, i hope you enjoy:)

Keith woke up to the sound of _thunder_.

He startled awake, blankets flying off of him as he kicked them off in an attempt to get out of bed.

He needed to leave- He needed to find somewhere safe-

He quickly pulled on pants (ignoring the fact that he was starting to hyperventilate), trying to ignore the sound of rain hitting the ground by their small(ish) dorm, the sound of lightning cracking through the sky-

He pushed the door open, stumbling into the living room of their dorm (theirs as in his, Lance's and Pidge's, who was staying with Matt for the night), looking for a place he could hide- The man was coming down again- He was going to make him sleep in the storm again-

He tripped over the low coffee table, hitting the couch with an ' _oomph_ ', that was barely audiable over the sound of a plastic cup hitting the floor. 

He ignored it, just like he did with a lot of things, and grabbed his phone off of the end table by the couch, which he stupidly forgot there the night before-

Thunder boomed again, prompting a yelp from Keith as the phone dropped from his trembling fingers.

He tried to breathe deeply, only to end up choking on his own air supply. He chose to give up on breathing and just call Shiro-

He didn't notice he was crying until lightning cracked again, and once again ignored something; How it sounded like a belt coming down on his back-

"Hello?"

He didn't remember calling Shiro, even if he wanted to.

"Keith?" A pause. "Keith, what's wrong?"

Taking a shaky, fast, short breath, he started babbling to his brother. "S-Shiro, the-there's a st-storm g-goi-going o-on, a-and-"

"It's okay- Buddy, you've gotta calm down. I can promise you it's okay, that's not going to happen again. Those people are in jail for another thirty years, remember?"

"B-but, Sh-Shiro, th-the s-storm-" Keith heard the sound of the floor creaking, immediately sending his voice into the pits of Tartarus as the phone slid from his grasp once more.

"Keith, I- get Lance, okay? I don't want to leave you, but I'm in the middle of a meeting-" Shiro told him, though it was distant and muffled, seeing as it was in the crack of the sofa cushions. "I swear to God, I'll call you back when I'm done, okay?"

Keith froze when he heard a door open, muscles stiffening as he prepared for a beating-

"Keith? What are you doing?" Lance yawned at the end of the sentence, bring a fist to cover his mouth. Keith rubbed at his cheeks, acutely aware of how every tear was hitting the pillow with a soft, dull thud. Lance quickly took in Keith's state, becoming wide awake in mere milliseconds as he practically ran to the couch, sitting beside Keith. "What's wrong?"

Keith shook his head and dug his hands into his hair, yanking it as if it would make everything stop-

Another boom.

Another crack.

Keith screamed.

He tightened his hands into fists, not getting enough air-

Lance gently grabbed his wrists, pulling them from his hair. "Hey," he said softly, but Keith could hardly hear him over the blood rushing in his ears. "Keith, look at me."

Hesitantly, he brought his face up, eyes still watering and breath still too fast and short-

"Breathe with me, okay?" Keith stared into the deep, blue eyes as he tried to follow Lance's example, but he couldn't- they were- the storm-

Thunder boomed again, causing Keith to sob helplessly as he yanked his hands away from Lance, curling into a ball.

Warm hands settled on his back, pulling him into someone's (Lance's, his mind supplied), chest.

"Keith," He said softly, rubbing circles into his back. Keith was too tired to care about any of this- being embarrassed was a problem for future Keith. "It's okay," Keith clutched the front of Lance's shirt, looking for any comfort he could find- He'd take it while he could get it; Lance would never do this again. Especially after he learned about the tiny crush... "Can you breathe with me?"

Keith nodded tersely, pulling away when Lance gently directed him away. He made exaggerated hand gestures as he tried to get Keith to breathe. He followed as best he could, trying to force out the sounds of his erractic heartbeat and the rain slapping the ground outside of their window-

More cracking.

Keith whimpered, squeezing his eyes shut. He still tried to breathe: He had to do something useful, after all.

"Keith, it's okay," Lance was pulling him into another embrace, and fuck, Keith was too tired to fight it; Even if it was Lance, he didn't like physical contact. "It's okay, it's okay," Lance buried his nose in Keith's hair, rubbing his back in a soothing motion. He continued to whisper small reassurances into Keith's ear, even if they were drowned out by Keith's shaky sobs.

Another boom.

Another crack.

Keith muffled his scream.

This went on for a few more... hours? minutes? Keith couldn't tell anymore.

But then the lights shut off.

Keith's breathing stopped, just as fast as Lance stopped talking.

"No," Keith whispered, pushing away from Lance and his warm body. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no- this can't be happening-"

"Keith, what's wrong?" Though he couldn't really see him, Keith could make out the vague outline of his body, coming closer to Keith's.

"I can't- Shiro- I need-" Keith was on the verge of hyperventilating again-

"Shiro?" Lance asked. "Do you want me to call him?"

"Yes- yes, please- I can't-" Keith tugged at the collar of his shirt, trying to absorb more air- "Lance," he gasped, trying to rip his shirt off, because logical thinking has gone out the window, "I can't- I can't breathe-"

"Yes you can, Keith," Shiro's calm, gentle, soft, solid voice filled the small room that had regained a little bit of light from Lance's cinnamon smelling candle. "It's just your mind: You can breathe. Do it with me, okay?"

Keith nodded tersely, not realizing Shiro couldn't see it.

"Keith?"

"He nodded," and Keith's hands were shaking now-

He vaguely heard a phone clattering on a table, vaguely felt hands over his, vaguely saw Lance's blue eyes-

Then everything went black.

* * *

Lance had been awake for an hour when he heard the banging coming from his living room. He wasn't really sure if it was Keith waking up, or a burglar, but he really hoped it was the former. He did _not_ want to deal with a burglar today.

He had been having a shitty day.

First, some perverted customer asked if he could get a piece of Keith, _'if you know what I mean'._

Second, he got demoted from his job for punching said customer.

Third, he was late for his class because he made sure Keith got to his without any perverts trying to rape him, because it was just one of those days.

Fourth, he got a fifty nine on his assignment.

Fifth, his car broke down five miles from his apartment.

Sixth, after he got his car back up and running, he couldn't find his key.

Seventh, when he got inside, he found Keith, in the kitchen, trying to put out a fire.

Eigth, Keith had ended up burning his forearm.

And finally, there was a storm going on. 

He hated storms.

Not in the way that he was scared of them, but that he actually hated them. They were stupid, and bothered him, keeping him from sleep. 

With a huff, he got out of bed with only his pyjama pants on, grabbed a bat, and opened the door to his room, stepping out into the cold main room. He saw Keith sitting on the couch, staring at him with wide eyes. "Keith? What are you doing?" He stifled a yawn with his fist, realizing that he only got a good twenty minutes of sleep. Blinking tiredly, he scanned Keith- his cheeks looked wet, he was shaking, and he could head the fasts breaths he was taking- What was going on? He walked over to him, practically running, and sat down. "What's wrong?"

Keith shook his head and dug his hands into his hair and _tugged_ -

Thunder and lightning cracked outside, eliciting a scream from Keith.

Immediately panicked, he grabbed Keith's wrists, careful of the burn, and pulled them away from his hair, into his lap. "Hey," he said softly, trying to keep Keith calm. He was shaking harder than before eyes trained on the cushions. "Keith, look at me."

Keith did so, slowly bringing his head up. His eyes were wet and his breathing was still too fast.

"Breathe with me, okay?" He took a large, deep breath of air, never tearing his eyes away from Keith-

There was more thunder, more lightning, as Keith sobbed, tearing his wrists away from Lance's loose grip. He curled into a tight ball, shaking with sobs and...  _fear_. He was scared. The storm was scaring him.

Swallowing down the anger at the people who made the unbreakable Keith Kogane scared, he pulled Keith into a loose hug, giving him enough space to pull away if he needed to.

"Keith," he said softly, rubbing circles into his back. He wasn't sure if it helped, but he seemed to calm down a little bit. "It's okay," Keith grabbed the front of Lance's shirt, twisting the fabric with his hands. Lance was fine with that- it meant he was actually starting to help Keith. He tried not to notice how they fit together perfectly- "Can you breathe with me?" Nope, not going down that lane. Keith would reject him and that was that.

Keith nodded tersely, not protesting when Lance gently pushed him away so he could watch Keith breathe. He moved his arms around in overdramatic gestures, trying to help Keith breathe in any form possible- he was starting to consider giving the poor guy CPR (for the breathing thing, not so he could taste Keith's gorgeous lips-).

Keith was starting to breathe properly until lightning cracked outside. Lance watched with uselessness as Keith whimpered and squeezed his eyes shut, still trying to breathe properly, unsure of how to help.

"Keith, it's okay," Lance kept his voice low, pulling him into another hug, ignoring the small flinch Keith gave. He was practically in Lance's lap, but that was fine, he wasn't getting hard- "It's okay, it's okay," he buried his nose in Keith's hair, ignoring how he sounded like a broken mantra- he didn't know how to help. He continued saying 'it's okay,' or 'it'll be over soon', hoping Keith could hear it over the shaky sobs that took over his body.

There was more thunder.

More lightning.

He felt Keith muffle a scream on his shirt, mixed with a few sobs.

During the next hour (and there was no way Lance was letting Keith go to his classes tomorrow. He was glad he didn't have any classes), he had debated calling Shiro four times. Shiro was Keith's older brother, older, as in, he's twenty six and Keith is nineteen, and practically his dad. He knew Shiro was at an important meeting, but if Keith was like this and he knew what to do...

There was another boom of thunder, then the lights shut off.

Lance stopped talking, more out of shock than anything, just as he felt Keith stop breathing.

"No," Keith muttered, pushing away from Lance. Lance watched him with worried eyes. "no, no, no, no, no, no, no- this can't be happening-" Keith had pressed himself against a wall, hands braced against it like he might fall, which was very possible at the moment, seeing as he was trembling.

"Keith," he got off the couch and walked towards Keith, even if he couldn't really see the guy. "What's wrong?" 

"I can't- Shiro- I need-" Keith was hyperventilating again, eyes becoming more wet by the second.

"Shiro?" Lance asked, and damn it, he should've called him sooner, screw the meeting, Keith was more important. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, thankful he left it there. "Do you want me to call him?"

"Yes- yes, please- I can't-" He watched Keith tug at his shirt, as if that was the problem to his breathing. He failed Shiro's number, hoping Shiro wasn't stupid enough to turn his phone off- 

"Lance? What's wrong?" Shiro asked, his voice unaffected by the static. 

"Lance," Keith gasped, trying to rip his shirt off. 

"There's a storm going on, and-"

He could hear Shiro's determination and worry. "Put me on speaker. I'll talk to him."

"O-okay," Lance pressed the speaker button, then walked closer to Keith.

"I can't- I can't breathe-"

"Yes, you can, Keith," Lance turned up the volume as he lit a few candles- the ones Lance knew Keith liked; they helped calm him down when he was angry. "It's just your mind: You can breathe. Do it with me, okay?"

He watched Keith nod sharply, fingers digging into the wall.

"He nodded-" Lance started to tell him, but then Keith was falling- he dropped the phone, uncaring of where it landed, and dived forwards to catch him. He kept him from hitting his head, then pulled him onto the couch, hardly hearing Shiro. He cupped Keith's hands with his (God, they were so adorably tiny), watching as those shimmering violet eyes started to close. "Keith- hey, Keith!"

Keith slumped onto Lance's chest, his breathing evening out.

Trying to shake off the shock, he grabbed the phone and turned it off speaker so Shiro's yelling wouldn't wake him up.

"Um, Shiro?" He laid backwards on the couch, pulling Keith on top of him. He grabbed a blanket off of the ground and pulled it over Keith. He caught sight of a blue pair of pyjama pants, that were way too long on Keith, and made a mental note to tease him for wearing his pants later on. 

"Lance, what's going on? Is Keith okay? What happened? Where-?"

"He- um, he's fine, I think. He passed out a few minutes ago-"

" _What?!_ "

"He was hyperventilating! I couldn't stop it!" He was yelling in a hushed whisper, careful not to wake Keith up. Sleep was sleep, and God knows Keith needed it.

He heard Shiro sigh deeply on the other end, along with Allura's voice telling him to hurry the fuck up. "Okay. He's fine, though, right? Like, no injuries from any of that?"

"None," Lance assures, despite the burn on Keith's forearm.

"Okay. Okay," Shiro collected himself on the other line. "When he wakes up, he's going to want you to stay with him. He'll be scared, but not as much as a few minutes ago."

"Why was he so scared?" Lance asked, carding his fingers through Keith's soft mullet.

"If Keith doesn't tell you, I'll tell you when my meetings over. One more thing; when he wakes up, have food ready. He gets really hungry after a panic attack- we still aren't sure why."

"Got it."

"And Lance?"

"Yeah?" Lance grabbed the cup that fell and put it back on the table, all while keeping Keith asleep on his chest.

"Thank you."

"It was really no problem. Couldn't let Mullet over here-"

"Lance, I know you've got a crush on him. It's fine. I'm just asking you- don't break his heart."

Lance blushed fiercely. "Ah- what makes you say that?"

He could feel Shiro's unimpressed dad look.

He sighed. "Fine, yeah. I do."

"Good luck," He knew Shiro too well. He knew he winked right before he hung up. 

Lance sighed again, turning off his phone and putting it on the table.

He'd call a pizza place in the morning, then wait for Keith to wake up. He knew how much Keith liked pizza.

For now, though, he'd sleep.

He welcomed the darkness gratefully.

* * *

Lance woke up first, which was a pleasant surprise- Keith was normally the one to wake up first. 

He sighed in contentment, smelling Keith's fruity shampoo. God, it suited him so well. 

He laid there a few more minutes, listening to Keith's soft snores, the cute noises he made in his sleep, and rubbing Keith's back.

Then he remembered what Shiro said.

Internally groaning, he took an arm out of the blanket and slowly grabbed his phone, squinting at the bright light coming from it. He dialed the number of Mr. Mozzarellas, Keith's favourite (and Lance's too, but Keith doesn't have to know that), and raised it to his ear, listening to the annoying rings and waiting for them to answer. Were they even open-?

"Mr. Mozzarella, how can I help you?"

"Hey," Lance said, recognizing Hunk's voice. He worked there part time before his classes. "Hunk, do you guys have..." He tried to remember what Keith ate when he was sad or pissed off... "French fries, um, root beer and..."

"What's going on?" Hunk asked, voices in the background barely audible. 

Lance sighed. "Keith had a panic attack last night. Shiro told me he gets really hungry after it, so I'm trying to remember his comfort foods-"

"French fries, root beer, chicken fingers, pizza, and chocolate milk shakes, right?"

"Jesus Christ- how do you know that?!" Lance demanded quietly, careful not to wake Keith up.

"He had a panic attack with me before. I asked him what he wanted when he woke up- told me chicken fingers and french fries. And he just, really, really likes chocolate milkshakes."

Lance hummed in response.

"I've got bonus points with my boss-"

"Because she's your girlfriend," Lance commented, smirking.

Hunk huffed nervously. "N-no! She's not- whatever. I'll get off early and go to Mcdonald's. I'll bring the stuff, but he doesn't like more than one person in the panicover, that's the hangover of a panic attack, so. Yeah. Just use protection, man."

"H-Hunk! We're not-!" The phone call ended.

He wasn't sure how long he stared at the phone for when the door slammed open, revealing a tired and coffee filled Pidge.

"Hey, bitches! I'm ba-"

"Shut the fuck up!" Lance hissed quietly, gesturing to Keith, who was still asleep on top of Lance.

Pidge sent him a knowing smirk, but stayed quiet. 

"And pass me my computer," Lance added, just as she disappeared into the kitchen, where he left it.

She returned seconds later with a cup of coffee and Lance's computer, already open. She knew his password, but only because she had hacked into it when he refused to tell her what Keith and he did after everyone else left the café. They were the last two there, and Lance needed to hand in a project on photography and his subject was people, so why not Keith? Besides the perfect jawline, and violet eyes, and feminine but muscular frame, the beach was right behind him, and the wind was blowing his hair around, and he was staring off into the distance- like Lance said, perfect project picture.

Lance took it with a quiet thanks, then placed it on the table as he fixed the blanket that was starting to fall off. He ignored the fact that he couldn't really feel his legs- it was normal, after all. Keith was on them. 

He opened up his email, ignoring the spam and one from his university, Keith's too, saying all classes would be cancelled tomorrow for unexplained reasons, and clicked the compose button, typing in Keith's art teachers email address.

He only knew it because Keith had gotten sick and tried to go to his art class once, but Lance had stopped him and forced Keith to tell him his teachers email. It helped that Coran was Allura's uncle.

_Dear Coran,_

_Sorry for emailing you at such an early hour, but I need to inform you that Keith Kogane will not be attending your class today. He had a panic attack last night, and knowing him, he'll try to attend even if he got no more than two hours of sleep. He is still extremely freaked out, and I refuse to let him leave the dorm for today. I will send Hunk to pick up any homework he may have._

_Thank you,_

_Lance McClain._

God, Lance hated writing formal letters. They made him cringe so badly.

With a small sigh, he turned off his internet, then closed his computer and put it on the end table.

He grabbed the remote to the tv, which was conveniently in Lance's reach, and turned on Netflix. He and Lance had been watching a new series lately- Stranger Things. He loved the way Keith would hide against him whenever he got scared, or whenever he got tired he would lean his head on Lance's shoulder, or how he wouldn't push away Lance's arm when he faked a yawn and wrapped it around Keith. He loved how Keith wouldn't shoot down his theories and would actually add in some of his own, he loved how Keith's breath would hitch before something bad happened, he loved how his eyes would shine when he laughed, God, he loved that rare laugh, and loved it even more when Lance made that happen-

The door opened, and Lance freaked out for a second before he realized it was Hunk, balancing a tray of McDonald's drinks, a McDonald's bag, and a pizza box. Bless him.

"Hey!" He greeted cheerfully, but still quietly, once he saw Lance on the couch. He didn't seem to notice Keith. "Where's Keith?"

Lance snorted, then pointed to the lump on top of him that made a cute squeaking noise that totally didn't make Lance blush.

Hunk formed an 'o' sound with his mouth, then placed the food and drinks on the table in front of him.  "Cute," he muttered quietly, with a teasing smirk.

"Shut up," Lance hissed, glaring at his best friend. 

Hunk just winked at him, then reached into his backpack to grab a container of chicken fingers.

"Hunk, my man," Lance praised, carding his fingers through Keith's hair, who leaned into the touch. "Did you-?"

"Yep," Hunk answered with a bright smile, setting the container on the table with a bottle of ketchup. "I've gotta go to class. Tell Keith I said hi!"

"Will do," Lance sent him finger guns when he left the dorm, closing the door.  

Keith mumbled incoherently, nuzzling into Lance's neck. "'s warm..."

Lance laughed quietly, rubbing Keith's back.

Keith hummed, his eyes fluttering open.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Lance teased, poking his side.

Keith immediately froze up, scrambling off of Lance. "L-Lance, t-the st-storm-"

"Is over," Lance sat up, trying not to feel disappointed that Keith left his comforting spot. The blanket fell off of Keith and onto the floor, making Keith flinch harshly. "It's just rain-"

"Rain," Keith repeated, staring out of the window. "Rain."

"Um, Keith? Are you-?"

"The rain- it means the storm isn't o-over-" Keith was shaking again. 

"No- Keith, it's over. Look outsid-"

"La-Lance, no- it- please-"

"Here," he turned on his phone and slid it to the weather app. "Check the weather. No storms for the rest of the day."

Keith took the phone from him with shaking hands, and seemed to visibly calm down. "Okay," he breathed out, giving him back the phone.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, Lance spoke up. "I- um, set up Neflix if you wanted to watch something, and Hunk, that awesome guy, brought a bunch of food when I called Mr. Mozzarella-"

Keith's eyes drifted to the table full of food, and they immediately lit up. "I... I thought you hated that place."

Lance shrugged. "So? You were upset and I know you really liked th-that place," his blush was rapidly increasing. 

"Thank you," Keith mumbled, visibly relaxing. He made grabby hands for the milkshake.

Lance snorted, reached for the milkshake, and offered it to Keith. He took it with a small smile, blushing when their fingers brushed. 

Keith rubbed his eyes and yawned, pulling his knees up to his chest and putting the milkshake inbetween his chest and legs. "What time is it?"

"Um," Lance quickly looked at his phone, suddenly feeling self conscious as Keith stared at his exposed chest with flushed cheeks. "7:35am, holy shit."

"I wake up at 5:30, normally," Keith commented, closing his eyes. "This is heaven for me."

Lance rolled his eyes but snorted, again. "Weirdo."

Keith sipped his milkshake with a smile on his face. He didn't seem too scared anymore. 

"So, last I checked, we were on episode six of Stranger Things. Wanna binge it?"

"Oh- I, um, have class- shit-"

Lance put a finger to his mouth, shushing him. "Nope. Talked to Coran. You're staying home."

Keith blinked at him. "You what?"

"I, um, emailed Coran? And- you're staying home? Today?" Lance immediately felt guilty; he didn't mean to make Keith mad-

"Thanks," Keith gave him another rare, small smile. "And yeah. Let's watch it."

"O-okay," Lance smiled back, forcing his blush to go away. _Not now gay thoughts, not now!_

He grabbed the remote and clicked play, leaning back into the couch with one of the many carton of fries.

Keith slowly uncurled and moved closer to Lance. Not close enough that they were cuddling, but enough that their shoulders brushed. 

Hesitantly, Lance yawned (it was not fake) and stretched, wrapping an arm around Keith's shoulders. Keith gave Lance a millisecond before he sagged against Lance, head resting on his shoulder. 

"Lance," Keith murmured, curling against his side. He fiddled with the straw of his milkshake.

"Yeah?" He paused the show, shifting so he could get a better look at Keith, but not enough to let go of him. He liked having Keith in his arms. 

"I, um," Keith's face had gone completely red. "I like you."

"Oh," Lance said, stupidally.

Keith tensed beside him, moving so the arm would fall to Lance's side. "Lance?" He was on his knees on the couch, hands folded in his lap. "Is- do- um-"

"Keith," Lance mimicked his position, trying to meet Keith's gaze, who's was trained on the floor. "Can I kiss you?"

"I- _What_ ," Keith gaped at Lance, clearly uncomprehending.

Lance huffed, grabbed Keith's arm and pulled him towards him. Since Keith was still a little shell shocked, Lance did all of the work. He tilted Keith's head up and locked mouths with his-

"Gross!" Pidge hissed, emerging from her room. 

Lance huffed, again, and pulled Keith from the couch. "Wanna hear my impression of a chicken, Pidge?" He asked, grabbing his sweatshirt and putting it on Keith, who was still unresponsive, but his fingers hovered over his bottom lip. He grabbed another sweater and put it on himself, then opened the door and gently shoved Keith out. "Fucka!"

That pulled a snort from Keith as Lance closed the door and took his hand.

Lance watched him from the corner of his eyes as he pulled him along- the blue sweatshirt he gave him matched Lance's pyjama pants- too big for him, and it was _adorable_.

"Where are we going?" Keith asked quietly, letting Lance tug the hood over his head.

"Outside."

"W-what? Why?" Keith seemed a little scared of that- he'd have to ask why.

"Pidge doesn't want us in the dorm because we're being 'gross'," he made air quotes with one hand.

The rest of the walk was in a comfortable silence, at least for Lance. When they got to the door, he opened it and held it for Keith, who stepped out slowly, _cautiously_.

"Lance-" He got cut off from Lance, who had pulled him close with a hand on his waist and the back of his neck, and into a kiss. Keith was shaking slightly, but didn't protest. Instead, he fisted his hands into Lance's shirt and kissed back. "Can- can we go inside? Please?" he asked against Lance's mouth.

"But Pidge-"

"S-she can," Keith broke off, trying to breathe properly. The rain was soaking his- Lance's sweater and-

_He was chained to a tree by his ankle, unable to get it off. His foster parents, Zarkon and Haggar, watched him struggle helplessly, laughing at his weakness. The storm was raging above him, the hail and water hitting his exposed skin. He sobbed and cried out, hoping anyone would come- anyone-_

_No body did._

_He was left out there for the night. No food, no clothes, constantly paranoid that the lightning would hit him, whip marks on his back._

_He_ _wanted to leave- no, he needed to leave, but he couldn't. His fingers couldn't break the chain that was around his ankle, it couldn't break the root it was attached to-_

_But lightning, he discovered, could. It flashed twice: Once it hit the chain, breaking it completely, twice, it hit him._

_Keith screamed, and screamed, and screamed- it was tearing his skin apart, burning him from the inside out and no one was coming-_

_"Keith!"_

"Keith!" Lance snapped Keith out of his thoughts, shaking his shoulders.

"I- wha- Lance?" It came out as a breathy whisper. "What happened?"

"Are you okay? You kind of just zoned out on me," Lance couldn't hide his worry or fear. Keith had screamed and cried and begged to be let go- "Then started screaming."

"O-oh," Keith stammered, embarrassment flooding him. "I, um. Not really."

"What's wrong?"

"C-can we go inside?" Keith asked, looking at his feet.

"Of course," Lance lead him inside with a hand on the small of his back. Once they were inside, it moved to go around his waist.

"When, um," he cleared his throat, resting his head on Lance's shoulder. "When I was a kid, I had foster parents- a lot of them. I know I've told you this before, and I know you know hey we're abusive, but I didn't really say what they did..."

Lance hummed in response, trying not to show his anger.

"My last family before Shiro, I was thirteen- I, um, I snapped at them, or something. I don't really remember, but their punishment for that was to-" he choked down a sob. "They chained m-me to a tree, and l-left me outside during a storm, a-all night-"

"Those fucking monsters," Lance hissed. "They better be in fuckig jail."

Keith ignored him, continuing with the story. He needed to let it out, with someone who wasn't Shiro. "The lightning hit the chain, first. It broke it in half and I-I thought I could run, b-but... I couldn't. It was the middle of the night, and I still don't know how Shiro found m-me, but I got hit by the lightning seconds after. He came at least a minute after I got struck, and  called an ambulance. He- he blocked Zarkon's door so they couldn't come outside, b-but they f-found a way out, and- and Shiro- he protected me, even though I was practically dead already-"

Lance had cupped his face, wiping away his tears with the pads of his thumb. Keith sobbed and leaned into Lance, who was a warm and solid anchor.

"H-he lost his arm to Z-Zarkon, and his nose was almost cut off- but he still beat him- and- and then the ambulance came, and he almost didn't make i-it-"

"It sounds like you almost didn't make it," Lance whispered, rubbing circles into his back.

"I didn't make it," Keith said slowly, pulling out of Lance's hold and hugging himself. He didn't deserve that. "I did die."

Lance blanched. "Are they dead?"

"Z-Zarkon's in a coma, and Haggar's still out there- they haven't found her. L-last night, Shiro tried to tell me they were in jail- it's what he always does when I freak out like this- and it helps, but I know it's not true the next day and I get scared all over again because Haggar is out there and she could come kill any of us at any second because she lost her husband to Shiro and she could come torture me again until-"

"Hey- hey, calm down. It'll be okay. It'll all be okay. I'll protect you, okay? You're safe with me," Lance hesitantly wrapped his arms around Keith, who stayed still, but trembled, and placed a kiss to the top of his head. "You're safe now."

Maybe, just this once, Keith could let himself believe that.

**Author's Note:**

> i think i'm going to make this into a series. lemme know what you think.   
> it'll be a series where there's a bunch of stories that connect to eachother- like how they met, what they do for anniversaries- shit like that. (read True Love or Something to understand what I mean. it'll be like that but with my own stuff)  
> anyways. that chicken impression i made up, and do, and it just. it's amazing, and i love it.  
> lemme know what you guys thought!  
> *originally supposed to be cute fluffy 1k klance fic about storms. oops*


End file.
